In their paper, published in the journal Historical Biology, the team describes where the eggs were found, the techniques used to study them, and what they learned about them.
In 2021, scientists at a construction site in Ganzhou discovered six dinosaur eggs dating back to the late Cretaceous period. It was discovered in a well-preserved nest, providing valuable information about the nesting behavior of this ancient creature.
The Ganzhou Basin in Jiangxi Province, southern China, is famous among paleontologists as one of the “richest egg fossil sites in the world.”
After three years of careful analysis, the excavations revealed the remains of a completely new type of dinosaur, estimated to be more than 80 million years old.
“This discovery increases the diversity of dinosaur eggs in the late Cretaceous period and is important for our understanding of the evolution of theropods in the late Cretaceous period,” the paleontologists said in the new study.
Specifically, it challenges previous assumptions about the size and shape of theropod eggs.
According to the Global Times, a joint research team from the University of Geosciences of China, in Wuhan, and the Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, led by Lu Fasheng, conducted a careful analysis of the eggs.
Using advanced technology such as scanning electron microscopy and electron scattering diffraction, they examined the surface and crystal structure of the eggs. The micro-CT scan allowed them to reconstruct the burial state of the fossils and gain insights into the dinosaur’s reproductive system.
They also investigated the micro- and macro-structures of eggs, including the thickness of their shells. These non-destructive techniques allowed scientists to study tiny fossils without causing damage.
After an intensive study that lasted three years, they confirmed that the eggs belonged to a new genus and species of dinosaur. Named Minioolithus ganzhouensis, this previously unknown non-flying theropod is characterized by “small egg size, irregular egg arrangement, worm-like and knot-like ornamentation, and gradual boundaries between two skeletal layers.”
According to the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the most intact egg, measuring just 29 mm, set a new world record for the smallest dinosaur egg fossil ever discovered. This small but fascinating discovery provides paleontologists with valuable new information about the diversification of dinosaur eggs and the evolution of theropods during the Late Cretaceous period.
The Global Times concluded that the next phase of research aims to gain “deeper insights into the lives and ecology of these ancient creatures.”
Source: Interesting Engineering
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